Seven Minutes In Wolfstar
by rhydbird
Summary: It must be the Firewhisky, Remus thought. There was no way he would have agreed to this had he been sober. Remus Lupin, the shy bookworm, Remus Lupin the werewolf, Remus Lupin the only sixth year yet to have had his first kiss – was seated cross-legged in a circle of drunk Gryffindors, about to embark on an unforeseen adventure. RLxSB - Wolfstar
1. Seven Minutes In Heaven

Disclaimer: I own nothing, the Harry Potter world and characters belong to JKRowling

It must be the Firewhisky, Remus thought. There was no way he would have agreed to this had he been sober. Remus Lupin, the shy bookworm, Remus Lupin the werewolf, Remus Lupin the only sixth year yet to have had his first kiss – was seated cross-legged in a circle of drunk Gryffindors, about to embark on an unforeseen adventure. For when one burly seventh year had proposed they play a little party game, Remus had agreed enthusiastically.

"I'm in!" he had announced, surprised by how bold the alcohol was making him. It wasn't even as if he'd drunk that much, nowhere near what James or Sirius had.

"What game do you have in mind?" Lily had asked from across the room, slightly suspicious. After all, this is a Gryffindor party we're talking about, and reckless behaviour was almost inevitable.

"Oh, nothing too dangerous," the seventh year had replied, "just seven minutes in heaven or something,"

So that was how Remus had ended up sitting on the floor, staring at an empty Butterbeer bottle as it span round and round, slowing gradually. It would stop at him eventually, Remus knew, but please not now, he silently begged it, not yet. His wish was granted, as two fifth year girls were the first to enter the broom cupboard, both giggling frantically. One tripped over her feet in excitement and blushed scarlet as she was hauled through the door by the other girl.

"Your seven minutes start… Now!" the seventh year announced, projecting a countdown into the air with his wand.

"So Sirius, who are you hoping for?" James asked jokingly, scanning the circle, "I hear Marlene has her eye on you,"

"Dear Godric, no," said Sirius, pulling a face in disgust.

"Come on, mate, don't be rude," James teased, "surely you don't find her _that_ ugly,"

Sirius shook his head, and a stray lock of hair from his ponytail fell into his face.

"No, she isn't ugly, she's just…", he searched for an appropriate reason,"… not really my type." A weak excuse, but it would have to do – Marlene was, after all, a very pretty girl.

"_I_ think Sirius has his eye on someone else!" Peter observed, nudging James in the ribs.

James' eyes lit up.

"Ooh, really!" he exclaimed with glee, "come on Pads, tell us!"

Sirius took another swig of Firewhisky and winked dramatically at the other marauders.

"Not likely."

James looked heartily disappointed.

"Don't worry, Prongs," said Remus, putting his arm over his friend's shoulders, "I'm sure we'll wheedle it out of him eventually. Hoping for anyone yourself?" It was a stupid question, but it served its purpose – to distract James from asking him the very same question. Remus never had been a good liar.

"You don't even need to ask him," Peter pointed out, "he's been looking for an excuse to talk about Lily all night,"

"I have not!" James protested indignantly, "I haven't mentioned her once tonight!"

"Yeah, right," said Sirius, "if you don't count ten minutes ago when you compared the colour of her hair to the Firewhisky,"

"Or when you talked all our ears off earlier, yacking on about whether she'd be here," Remus added with a grin. Peter laughed, snorting.

"But _will_ she be there?" he imitated, his round face capturing James' look of pathetic longing perfectly, "I don't think I could take it if she doesn't show up!"

James huffed and folded his arms, annoyed, but he was soon distracted as the timer went off above their heads, showering the room in golden sparks. Someone yanked open the broom cupboard door, and the fifth year girls tumbled out, looking decidedly more bedraggled. They picked themselves up and hurried away together, their faces flushed. It was time to spin the bottle again. Round and round it went, slower and slower until it finally stopped, pointing directly at Sirius.

"Good luck, mate," Peter said, and Sirius nodded in reply, before downing the remainder of the bottle of Firewhisky he was holding. Remus tutted.

"Don't you think you've drunk enough already tonight?" he said, taking the empty bottle from Sirius' hands.

"Not if the bottle lands on this ugly bugger here next," Sirius said, punching James playfully.

James punched him back. "At least Lily thinks I'm lovely," he said as the bottle was set spinning again. Remus and Peter shared a despairing look over James' head, as Sirius focused on the bottle, swaying in circles himself as he watched.

It took Remus a second to register that the bottle had stopped. Why he had assumed it would keep going, just like every other time it had passed him, he didn't know. But there it was, completely still and most definitely pointing at _him_. James and Peter roared with laughter as Sirius jumped to his feet and treated Remus to an elaborate, if rather wobbly, bow.

"My dearest Moony, what an honour this is!"

Remus rolled his eyes, hoping it was an appropriately ambivalent response. Before he knew it, the cupboard door was closed behind them.

Sirius was close – he could feel his breath in the dark. And he could smell him clearer than ever; under the stench of alcohol there was the bright smell he had grown so used to from six years sharing a dormitory. Sirius smelled golden.

"This is… interesting," said Sirius after a moment.

"No it's not," said Remus, trying to keep his voice level, "we stand in a cupboard for seven minutes, we vacate the cupboard, James and Pete make a few closet jokes. Done." Another painfully slow moment passed, and Remus pretended he was somewhere else, anywhere but here with Sirius so close.

"I can make it interesting," Sirius murmured, "if you like,"

Remus stopped breathing. He listened to the laughter of the party outside. His heart beat loudly once, twice, three times.

"Okay," he whispered.

Sirius moved closer, too quickly, bumping into Remus in the dark.

"There you are," he laughed, one of his hands finding the werewolf's face. Remus was glad he couldn't see how wide his eyes were, couldn't see how much he was shaking. Then Sirius leaned in, bringing their lips together. Objectively, it wasn't a very good kiss, due to Sirius' drunken lack of coordination, but Remus did not register this. Four years he'd been waiting for a moment like right now, yet now it was finally happening, he was terrified. What if he wasn't a good kisser? What if Sirius changed his mind? What if the door opened and the whole common room saw them?

Sirius broke away.

"Guess what, Moony," he said. Remus could hear him grinning.

"What?"

"I like you. A lot." The world started to spin.

"You're drunk, Padfoot." This was dangerous. Sirius would change his mind and then Remus' last, greatest secret would be out there, with no turning back.

"Not _that_ drunk," said Sirius. Remus leant back against the wall and closed his eyes, scrambling to collect his thoughts. After a few seconds, he opened them again.

"Um," he said eloquently.

"Yes..." prompted Sirius, humour evident in his voice.

"I, uh, I think-"

The door flew open, cutting him off and both boys blinked in the sudden light, momentarily blinded.

"What! They're still fully clothed!" Remus heard James' voice exclaim sarcastically, accompanied by Peter's distinctive laugh. Vision returning, he hurried over to the other marauders, resolutely looking anywhere except at Sirius.

A/N: Thanks so much for reading my first ever wolfstar fic! I would really appreciate any reviews, especially as this is my first fanfic and I'm sure I've got a long way to go. Also, this is **not** a one-shot, there will be many more chapters of wolfstar fluffiness yet to come!

Rhyd

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	2. Mamma Mia

Disclaimer: I own nothing, the Harry Potter world and characters belong to JKRowling

The Gryffindor sixth years were unusually subdued the next morning, dealing with the after effects of the previous night's party, and Professor Flitwick was quickly losing all patience with them.

"Professor?"

"Yes, Miss MacDonald?"

"Can I go to the Hospital Wing, please? I need a headache potion,"

"You as well?" Flitwick asked, exasperated. It seemed like the whole of Gryffindor had a headache this morning!

"Fine, off you go. Honestly, what's wrong with you lot today?"

After the lesson, the marauders assembled in the dormitory, preparing for a prank that was sure to liven up their sleepy classmates.

"Alright boys, are we ready for Operation Here I Go Again?", said James. On the floor at his feet was a crate full of small lavender-coloured worms which seemed to be, for lack of a better word, dancing, to the beat of some silent music.

"Could you have given it a longer name?" asked Peter, rolling his eyes.

"How about Operation I Could Never Let You Go?" James suggested.

"Uh, let's stick with the first one," said Peter.

"You coming, Moony?" Sirius asked, picking up the crate. Remus looked up from his book.

"You guys go without me, I'm not really in the mood for a detention," he said.

James gasped, outraged.

"Come on Moony, it was your idea!" he said, rounding on the werewolf and trying to tug the book from his hands.

"Careful, James, you'll rip it!" Remus exclaimed, snatching the book back and holding it to his chest protectively, "And that is such a lie – this was in no way my idea. Just because I was _reading_ about earworms doesn't mean I approve of distributing them to the entire school,"

"But I spent hours teaching them Mamma Mia!"

This was true. Remus knew because he'd found James having the time of his life, belting ABBA to some very attentive worms, when he'd walked into the dormitory a few days previously. He'd also found Sirius, looking majorly disturbed by this.

"Isn't it creepy?" Sirius had said, "the way those worm things _listen_ to him?"

Considering James' effort, Remus decided it would probably be best if he went along with them this time, if only to avert catastrophes. It was never a good sign when James was this emotionally invested in a prank.

"Okay, I'll come. But I'm not carrying those things," he said, eyeing the earworms with apprehension.

"That's our Moony!" said James, pulling Remus to his feet and slapping him on the back.

It would be a rather simple prank, but an effective one nonetheless. Remus and Sirius would wait in ambush, covered by the invisibility cloak, on a balcony just outside the doors to the Great Hall. As the students approached for lunch, they would let the earworms loose, and with one simple spell, the whole of Hogwarts would be listening to Mamma Mia on a loop until they could work out the counter-charm. James and Peter had volunteered to receive earworms along with the rest of the school, in a feeble attempt to appear less suspicious. Sirius had flat-out refused to listen to "that dreadful song" ever again, although Remus had a suspicion he actually quite liked it.

"This is where we leave you,"

James and Peter waved goodbye, leaving Remus and Sirius alone together on the balcony. They sat side by side under the cloak, Sirius listening to Moony's last-minute Charms lesson.

"It'll be faster if we both do it, you see… You must point your wand _away_ from your ears, otherwise you'll charm yourself by mistake… _Auris insinuo_, keep the 'i's short and crisp… Sirius are you listening?"

"_Auris insinuo_, got it, Professor,"

Remus huffed at the nickname and Sirius laughed.

"I'm not joking – you'd be a cracking Professor, Moony," he said earnestly.

"Really?" asked Remus, "what subject would I teach? And don't say Ancient Runes,"

"Well I would have said Ancient Runes, just to piss you off," Sirius said, smiling, "but honestly, I think Defence,"

Remus wriggled around to look at Sirius.

"Really? You think _I_ could teach Defence?" he said.

"Of course you could, why couldn't you?" Sirius replied. Remus mumbled something about his condition. Sirius scoffed.

"The kids wouldn't care about you furry little problem," he said, "if anything that just makes you cooler,"

Remus smiled sadly and looked at the floor.

"I wish the rest of the world thought like you, Pads," he said. Sirius felt his heart break slightly and he took Remus' hand gently in his own, a comforting gesture. For half a minute they sat like this in silence, one thought echoing uncomfortably in the space between them. Eventually, Sirius decided to voice it.

"So..." he said, "are we going to talk about last night?" He felt Remus tense, and let the werewolf's hand slip away from his.

"You were drunk last night," Remus said quietly, "and so was I,"

Sirius nodded slowly, he understood. Remus wasn't interested, he regretted what had happened.

"Yes," he said – then, "I'm sorry." Again they sat in silence, staring down at the empty Entrance Hall.

Remus didn't want him. The prank went perfectly. Sirius fought back tears.

A/N: Here we are, chapter 2! I'll be honest, I found this chapter difficult to write, especially keeping them apart at the end. Thankyou again for reading, and a special thanks to jane and Izzy.S.L for reviewing! Any suggestions for chapter 3?

Rhyd

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	3. Hiding the Truth

Disclaimer: sadly, I'm not J. and the characters and world don't belong to me

As the days grew shorter and the nights crept into their place, Sirius' seventeenth birthday loomed closer. This would normally have been a good thing, except Remus had precisely zero ideas of what to get him. What could he, Remus, buy that Sirius would value? What can he give that Sirius doesn't already have? Wiping the condensation away with his pyjama sleeve, he looked out of the window across the grounds, lit up by the waxing moon. This time it should be special, he would give Sirius a gift that would really make him happy.

Last year it had been easy – Pads had borrowed Lily's make-up one too many times, and had finally been banned from using it. He hugged Remus tighter than usual after opening his present that year (an excessive amount of black eyeliner), holding him for slightly too long, slightly too close. James had complained, jokingly and perhaps insensitively, that his present had cost more, surely he should get the better hug! Remus laughed, but he understood what the present had meant to Sirius, so soon after he came out to them all. Maybe it was stereotypical, but the make-up showed acceptance much more than words ever could. It said, "yes you might be gay, Padfoot, you might be different, but I love you just the same."

Things weren't so good between he and Sirius anymore, and Remus was immeasurably angry at himself for fucking up yet again. He'd been given the perfect opportunity to admit his feelings for Sirius, he knew now for certain that they were reciprocated, yet he was still stopped by his fear.

The problems started in July, just as OWLs were coming to an end. Remus sat revising, five years' worth of Transfiguration notes spread over his bed, spilling onto the floor. By inconvenient circumstance, he was studying the dangers of self-transfiguration just as a bored Sirius entered the dorm.

"That's a dick," Sirius stated, peering over Moony's shoulder.

"It's a diagram," said Remus, "showing the potentially disastrous effects of using _engorgio _on yourself,"

"It's still a massive dick," Sirius said, finding this very amusing, "hey Prongs, reckon Moony's gay? He's looking at pictures of dicks! I've always wondered if you were, actually,"

It was a joke, but closer to the truth than Remus wanted to admit.

"It's for Transfiguration!" he snapped, "The exam we have tomorrow. And I'm _not_ gay!"

"Are you sure?" Sirius teased, "I saw the way you were looking at that diagram,"

"Ew, no, that's gross, Sirius! Just 'cause you get turned on by the mere mention of dick doesn't mean we all do, we're not all faggots!" He saw his words hit Sirius like a blow to the face, and immediately regretted them. Sirius' body tensed, his hands clenched into fists, and for a second Remus thought he would hit him. Then Sirius walked towards to door, and as he got there, he drooped.

"Moony," he said, not looking at Remus, his voice very small, "Moony, I-" Then he opened the door and left.

Remus shivered by the window and longed for the heat of summer. Sirius didn't like the heat – he associated it too much with staying with his family – but summer always had been Remus' favourite season. He'd ruined last summer, for himself as well as Sirius, and although they'd made up, and although Sirius had, somewhere, a stack of letters full of heartfelt apologies, Remus knew it wasn't enough. Sirius deserved a better explanation than "I was stressed, I wasn't thinking".

Sirius deserved the truth.

oOo

The moon came and went, and the pack was very quiet without Padfoot. He'd been asleep when the others left for the shack, but anyone could tell he was faking. Moony clawed at his own chest, leaving five new scars, long and straight.

oOo

Remus sat cross-legged on Peter's bed, sharing a bar of Honeydukes with his friend. Chocolate was something they'd always bonded over – as Remus liked to say, a chocolate bar is worth a thousand words.

"Pete?" he asked, breaking the comfortable silence.

"Hm?"

"When you're, y'know, when something really frightens you… what do you do?"

Peter looked across at him, slightly confused by the question.

"Um, I don't _do_ anything exactly," he said, "just carry on as normal. Try not to look scared,"

Remus nodded thoughtfully.

"And if there's something you need to do, but you're terrified," he said, "how do you do it?"

"Quickly," Peter replied. He paused. "Is this about you and Sirius?"

"What do you mean, me and Sirius?" Remus said sharply. Peter looked guilty for asking.

"Well… it's kind of obvious he's mad at you, even if he's trying to hide it. I thought maybe… you were going to make up with him,"

Remus relaxed and found himself smiling.

"Yeah, that's sort of what it's about," he said, "thanks Pete, you've really helped,"

"Sure, mate," Peter said, "- hey, where're you going?" Remus was on his feet, heading out of the dormitory.

"To do something," Remus said. "Quickly," he added.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed it! Stick around for chapter 4, in which Remus makes amends, James gets spectacularly rejected and Sirius becomes an adult. A special thanks to Izzy, my lovely bestie and beta reader!

Love and sunshine,

Rhyd

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	4. Quickly

Disclaimer: chapter 4 and I'm still not J.K. Rowling! I don't own these boys (sadly) or Hogwarts (sadder still) or any other facet of the Wizarding World.

Remus didn't want him. Sirius walked slowly through the fallen leaves, crushing them into a damp mulch beneath his feet. It had been raining all morning and Hogwarts was still dripping, puddles of rainwater forming where it ran off the roof. The Forest, though it couldn't be described as cosy, was much drier, much quieter. The perfect place to be alone.

For Sirius, the Forest had long been a place of lonely walks, of self-hatred and big realisations. He walked there alone back in second year, when Regulus was sorted into Slytherin. In third year, when he realised he was gay, and September of last year when he finally told the other marauders. Last December when he fucked up in the biggest way possible, let slip a secret which nearly got Remus expelled or worse. It always came back to Remus, Sirius reflected, one way or another. He couldn't pinpoint exactly when he'd started seeing him as more than just a friend, but that tentative thought had managed to slowly escalate to a full-blown crush, right through to the soul-crushing worship of unrequited love. He really did like Remus. A_ lot_. It was something to do with the way Remus' eyes moved when he was reading, flicking from one line to the next, devouring the sentences, or the way a single curl of hair – longer than the rest – liked to fall into his face, breaking his concentration. Or perhaps it was the way he didn't let you copy his homework, insisting you did it yourself so you would _learn_, or the way that, in the end, he was always right. Sirius kicked a pine-cone in front of him as he walked, irritated when it tumbled off the path and into the undergrowth. He thought of the full moon and how he'd deserted Remus, selfishly, cradling his own hurt feelings. That wasn't good enough. You didn't desert someone you loved. So Sirius put himself aside and made a decision, which was this – if he and Remus were destined to just be friends, then he would be the fucking greatest friend a boy could ever dream of.

"Padfoot? Pads, is that you?"

He spun around to see James approaching, looking very dishevelled.

"You okay, Prongs?" he asked, "What's with the long face?"

James rolled his eyes half-heartedly.

"That joke wasn't funny the first time," he said, slumping to the ground beneath a tree. Sirius sat down beside him.

"You gonna tell me what's up?" he asked.

"Evans."

Smiling, Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Please don't tell me you asked her out again,"

James nodded and Sirius inhaled slowly, fighting back laughter.

"She rejected you?"

"Mmm,"

"I wonder why,"

"Hey!" James protested, "I haven't asked her for a whole week! That's plenty of time for her to have changed her mind,"

He really didn't understand James sometimes.

"If you say so, Prongsie."

oOo

Padfoot was nowhere to be found. Remus had searched all afternoon until eventually he'd given up and returned to the dorm, dripping wet and in need of a hot chocolate and a blanket. He found the latter, and was wrapped up, snug as a bug, when the door opened, admitting a slightly soggy Sirius.

"Hey, Moony," Sirius said as he plonked down onto his own bed, casting a Drying Spell.

"Hey, Pads," said Remus, his stomach spiky with nerves. _If there's something you need to do, but you're terrified, __how do you do it?__ Quickly__. _He could do this.

"Uh, Sirius can I, can I talk to you about something?"

"Sure, Moons, of course,"

Remus took a steadying breath.

"You remember what happened in July," he said. It was a statement, not a question.

"You've apologised," said Sirius, "it's fine, it's over."

"I know. But I never explained, not properly,"

Sirius lay back on his bed, hands rested on his chest.

"Let's hear it," he said.

And now Remus had to tell him. Oh shit, this was harder than he thought! But Sirius would be okay with it, wouldn't he? He stuttered and forgot his words. Of course he would, this was _Sirius._ He scraped the dirt out from under one of his nails. He mumbled and had to repeat himself. He started over and spoke louder.

"… and I can't believe I called you that, that _word_, I'm so sorry Sirius!" Remus said, "I just… I didn't want anyone to know… I wasn't ready and I didn't want you to guess that, uh, that I'm… well, that I'm gay."

And then he'd said it. No turning back.

"So… you called me a fag because I joked you were gay, but you actually were and you didn't want me to find out?" said Sirius.

Remus winced.

"It sounds so stupid when you say it like that,"

Sirius shook his head.

"No, it isn't stupid," he said, "you panicked, I get it,"

"I'm sorry," Remus mumbled, looking at the floor. He looked up as he heard Sirius cross the space between their beds to sit next to him.

"Can I give you a hug?" Sirius asked, and when Remus nodded, he did. His arms felt strong and Remus was shaking.

"Thank you for telling me, Moony," he murmured into Remus' hair, "thank you for trusting me."

It was over, he'd said it, he'd finally said it! Relief and adrenaline shuddered through his body, and Sirius held him as he cried.

Dinnertime rolled around, and the marauders sat together as usual. Sirius had agreed not to tell the others, not yet at least, and Remus was incredibly grateful for this. He knew how difficult it was for Sirius to keep things from James. James would be fine with it, he was sure, and Peter too – they'd been brilliant when Sirius had come out – but it was still scary, and Remus had had enough for one day.

He watched James write something on a piece of parchment and fold it carefully into the shape of a swan, frowning in concentration. Then he levitated it and it flew across the Gryffindor table towards, dear Godric, please tell me it isn't… yep, straight onto Lily's plate. Remus groaned as she opened it and read the note.

"Are you fucking _kidding_ me?" The hall went silent as Lily's voice rang out above the chatter. "I don't understand how you can really be this much of an idiot!"

"One day, Evans, you'll realise how bad you have it for me," said James, and he winked. Remus hid behind Sirius, pretending he wasn't there. Sometimes he really didn't want to associate himself with James Potter.

"That's the second time today! The _second time_! Really, Potter, I don't know where you get this preposterous idea I'd look twice at an arrogant, disrespectful, worthless shitbag like you!"

James opened his mouth and closed it again, as the hall burst into laughter around them.

"Language, Miss Evans!" scolded Professor McGonagall, striding up to the Gryffindor table, "Evans, Potter – detention!"

"But Professor!" James exclaimed, "I haven't done anything wrong!"

"I believe Miss Evans would say otherwise," said McGonagall.

Sirius grinned at Remus, tears of laughter shining in his eyes, and Remus was sure he'd never seen anything more beautiful.

A/N: thanks for reading, and thanks to everybody who's reviewed/favourited (is that a word? It should be). I'm terribly sorry for the lack of Sirius' birthday – it's coming next chapter, I promise! Shout-out to my amazing beta reader for helping me turn this chapter into something worth posting :)

Have a glorious day,

Rhyd

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